The Lame Gift Swap is a tradition I started with my close friends a few years back as a excuse to gather after the craziness of the holidays dies down. It’s one of my favorite traditions because its the absolute perfect time to dish about what our crazy families did over the holiday, reflect on all the fun we had over the year, and what we think the new year will bring to all of us. Sound...

Giving swapped gifts is a fabulous way to turn something “old” into something “new” for someone else, but it can be tricky. Secondhand & swap gifts are usually more thoughtful and personal, because they require a level of knowledge about the personality, hobbies, and passions of the recipient, but they easily come off as tacky, too.
If you’re shopping for...

My mom’s Christmas cookies are legendary. I mean, for real: generations of cousins, neighbors & family friends have come to equate the holiday season with the taste of her bright green, generously frosted, cinnamon-dot-bedecked almond butter Christmas tree cookies. The wails can be heard ’round the world the years that her schedule as a nurse has prevented her from baking the...